(CMC) – The main opposition St. Lucia Labour Party (SLP) Tuesday filed a motion of no confidence against the government of Prime Minister Allen Chastanet, calling also for his immediate resignation as the head of the two and a half year-old administration.

“In my capacity as leader of the Parliamentary Opposition and leader of the St. Lucia Labour Party, I delivered this morning to the Clerk of Parliament for onward submission to the Speaker of the House, a copy of a motion of no confidence in the Prime Minister and Minister of Finance,” SLP leader, Phillip J. Pierre told a news conference ahead of the start of Tuesday’s sitting of Parliament.

Chastanet led the United Workers Party (UWP) to an 11-6 majority in the Parliament following the June 6 general elections. The SLP won the other six seats.

Pierre said that the motion and the anticipated debate, will articulate the deep concerns, anxieties and the feeling of hopelessness among large sections of the St. Lucian society about the uncaring and irresponsible manner that the business of this country is currently managed.

He said that since the appointment and installation of Chastanet as prime minister and minister of finance, economic growth, job creation and external affairs, St. Lucia has been governed in a manner that has undermined the Constitution, its conventions and practices.

“We have witnessed a growing abuse of public office, unreasonable and irrational decision-making, unsustainable fiscal deficits, squandering of the State’s financial resources, and a debilitating decline in the public trust and confidence in the Prime Minister’s ability to govern the country”.

Pierre said that Prime Minister Chastanet while recognizing the requirement of a deputy Speaker by proposing and supporting the nomination of Sarah Flood-Beaubrun as deputy Speaker, caused her to resign at a subsequent meeting of Parliament without explanation, leaving the position vacant.

“This amounts to no more than an abuse and contempt for the intentions of our Constitution and the People’s Parliament.”

The Opposition leader said that Prime Minister Chastanet has refused to lay in Parliament for debate, a statement on the use of the funds in the St. Lucia National Economic Fund established under the Citizen by Investment Programme (CIP), despite pleas from the public and the Opposition.

“The Prime Minister, by his failure to do so, has acted in breach of the Act, thereby contributing to growing suspicions about the lack of transparency and trust in the Citizenship by Investment Programme.

“The Prime Minister has recklessly and irresponsibly allowed the economy to descend into unsustainable deficits and has embarked on the dangerous path of having to fund those deficits by incurring more debt,” Pierre said.

He said the “misguided actions and inactions” of Prime Minister Chastanet as it relates to the health of the nation “have plunged the provision of healthcare services into a deep crisis, created rising uncertainty, undermining morale among health care practitioners, and has now encouraged an exodus of trained nurses from the health care system.”

Pierre further claimed that Prime Minister Chastanet has demonstrated little appreciation for the value of education as a major instrument for the alleviation of poverty and the general well-being of St. Lucians. “He has adopted policies inimical to the interest and benefit of teachers and students and in so doing he is jeopardizing the future of our children and our country’s prospects,’ Pierre said, noting that while the SLP will not predict the outcome of the motion, there are legislators who are already deciding to vote against the motion before the debate takes place and are setting themselves up as “collaborators with Prime Minister Chastanet’s callous and uncaring policies”.

“The Opposition is calling on all House members, in particular, members on the government side, to place country above self, and support the vote of no confidence in the leadership of Allen Chastanet and that he resigns immediately as Prime Minister of St. Lucia,” Pierre told reporters.

23 comments

I am absolutely astounded to understand from these replies that there are still St. Lucian people who hold such asinine views in support of the Allen Chastanet administration. This foolishness about who did this and who did that. We must open our eyes and put a halt to entertaining and finding ways to justify such crap!
I do not know about the rest of the electorate but my concern is for the future of my kids. These less than pragmatic intentions and delusions of grandeur will not continue at my expense. Education is in a quandary, healthcare is in greater dire straits yet these so called leaders continue to blatantly act in their best interest. Despite all this people still hold these actions and ridiculous implementations in high regard? You all have got to be a bunch of blind or mentally unstable jokers. I absolutely refuse to be part and parcel to receipt of the fate which will befall all of us for the sake of partisan views. Who cannot hear will feel. In fairness to people like me you all need to feel it for your damn selves! Such an embarassment! So sad! Smh...

And sir, after this long-winded confusing rant, your point is what again? Tell us, when not under the influence of ganja and alcohol. When you think you can make much more sense than as if you were on a political platform, turn around and bowl it better. I have a higher education level than the SLP roadside en rouge grass cutters.

Hell yeah no confidence . The. UWP hacks are acting like there is a lot to be confident about and that would be ??? From day one he took office. It been a mess. All projects he inherit that were ment. to stimulate growth was stop. The health care system is a wreck and getting worse by the day he want sell OKU and built tent hospital are we not worthy. Crime crime crime non stop borrowing. 100 million U.S. just announce on the backs of st lucians with increase fuel surcharge to pay for it as if we not waist deep in debt already The deal of a lifetime selling the country sovereignty and. St Lucians birth rights for next to nothing. No confidence no confidence no confidence. What's there to confident about jokers

First of the PM was not installed and appointed. He was elected by the people of St. Lucia. If you want the reign of power you too have to be elected, instead of playing tthese petty political games. Stop wasting the time of the state and yours.

Did the UWP cut a deal with Roachamel for $45 million and with Grynberg for $150 million dollars and did not tell the people? Shame on the UWP for non-transparency. Or, was that the Salowpwee AKA SLP that did this?

Anybody with half a brain knows that those red shirts have for decades on end, been engaging in jackass politics. Modern media has only served to expose the depths of their ignorance and stupidity, and that of their lackeys and followers.

Look around. The better people have long deserted this group of jokers.

If this is your premise for opposing the vote of no Confidence, then you are also letting our country go to the dogs. UWP was voted in to do better than the SLP Administration, so much so, that some staunch SLP supporters voted them in as well and others refrained from voting. DO NOT FORGET THAT.

One administration's mismanagement does not give Allen Chastanet the right to mismanage OUR COUNTRY'S MONIES neither to piss and shit on St. Lucians.

If you want to know what this kind of corruption leads to why don't you interview the Haitians.

Right now I am very proud of the Bajan electorate, take note that they voted every one of these blood suckers and BOOWOOS out. That means supporters of both Parties were in agreement to get them out. The Bajans were for COUNTRY.

If that idiot up there knew the first thing about parliamentary government and representation, he would have known that unless more sitting MPs vote FOR the motion than against it, the result is just academic. Plain and simple.

Unless there is strong dissent within the ranks of the UWP to vote against the government, the behaviour of the SLP is just futile. Our en rouge ignoramuses do not know this.

Unless you are a political dummy, then you will know nothing about any of this. Just lile the person said, 'He who knows not that he knows not, he is an ass'. You shun him.

How come you did not see the country going to the dogs when SLP was creating ghettos rather than building the people real decent homes. The exPM constituency and in a town, SLP created Bruce Ville, a plywood and galvanized plywood ghetto.

Phillip you asnd your party are disgraceful to the Saint Lucian public and perhaps it is you who should resign as leader of the opposition. The reason why the UWP are taking this long to turn around is due to the extent of the sizeable mess you idiots have created therefore it will also take time to see the difference. You pier make me sick , instead to the negative criticism , for once work alongside each other the move the country forward . Saint Lucia is not limited my its true potential however morons such as youselves are the ones holding it back and a motion of no confidence will make very little difference at this stage in the party’s term .

Go ahead Pierre the joke will be on you six idiots. We are NEVER going backward the next election will be a clean sweep, we are taking St.Lucia to higher heights and the Prime Minister is leading the way. Please stay in you all low class section you cannot go out there and bring back food to put on our tables because you will stammer like a book ca bwit and no one will be able to understand or communicate with you give me a break.

piere move your old goofy face there. if you had to win elections tomorrow is the same old things yall are saying uwp is doing your party will still do. yall were in power yall were not dong a good job so yall are out so is not now you will want to do a good job all of you politicians are the same. you will go in power tomorrow yall will still not do a good job. and chastanet has nothing to answer to yall scumbags. so many things kenny do under cover and nothing for that. look at the jufalli affair yall go and appoint a man without saint lucia knowing nothing and he never once went to a meeting and if chastanet didnt dig in that the world would not have known

While i think pierre is an idiot i think u GW are a bigger idiot.. the prime minister has a duty to answer to the nation.. he is not transparent in what he does and thats the main concern here. i have no issues with chass sitting where he is but he needs to be transparent .. he needs to make the nation understand his plans and the way forward

you dont see that "Ma Mem Sav" is a mix breed. when kenny was in power i assume he was more transparent than chastanet it seems thats what he trying to say. people like "Ma Mem Sav" only listen to one side of the story and then they coming and talk shate

i might be a bigger idiot because is people like you that dont want to give him a chance. after the country was dead by the previous government the uwp trying to revive it and undo the mess slp did but eveything the man say yall already breathing down the man neck. give the people a damn chance Rome was not built in a day. you want to talk about making the nation know about his plans and way forward did kenny and his administration tell the nation about Juffalli being appointed? or we got to find out the boborl he did from someone else mouth and its true that the prime minister has a duty to answer the nation but not every dog that bark you have to tell them MARSH. but in your case MARSHHH!!!!!!

Pierre is a joke,he has won his sit for some time now. And still Marchand people still have pit toillet. But he criticizing the government that in power for about three years.come on man you can't make a difference in 20 something years but you want up do perform miracles. Come man be real